1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an electro-optical device including an electro-optical material interposed between a first substrate and a second substrate, and an electronic apparatus incorporated with such an electro-optical device.
2. Related Art
Electro-optical devices such as a liquid crystal device generally include a first substrate and a second substrate opposed to each other and bonded together via a seal member, and an electro-optical material including a liquid crystal material located in a space surrounded by the seal member between the first substrate and the second substrate. In case that moisture intrudes from outside into the electro-optical device through the seal member, the electro-optical material is prone to be degraded. Accordingly, for example JP-A-2009-163082, JP-A-2010-26307, JP-A-6-123882, and JP-A-2009-80396 propose providing a second seal member formed of a resin-based material or a rubber-based material, around the outer periphery of the first seal member. More specifically, JP-A-2009-163082 and JP-A-2010-26307 propose forming an encapsulating layer composed of an inorganic material on the surface of the second seal member, and JP-A-6-123882 and JP-A-2009-80396 propose employing a second seal member containing, dispersed therein, a desiccant such as silica gel micropowder, or particles of porous silicon oxide.
In the electro-optical devices according to JP-A-2009-163082 and JP-A-2010-26307, however, a special composition is not adopted for the second seal member, unlike in JP-A-6-123882 and JP-A-2009-80396. Therefore, once moisture from outside permeates through the encapsulating layer formed of an inorganic material, the moisture reaches the internal area through the second seal member and the first seal member. Further, in the electro-optical devices according to JP-A-6-123882 and JPA-2009-80396, when the silica gel micropowder or the porous silicon oxide is saturated with moisture, the hygroscopic effect is no longer expected. Furthermore, in the case of employing a filler as additive to the seal member as disclosed in JP-A-6-123882 and JP-A-2009-80396, the seal member has to contain a certain ratio of the filler in order to obtain the desired effect, which leads to an increase in viscosity of the seal member thus making it difficult to properly apply the seal member. Consequently, it is difficult to effectively prevent the degradation of the electro-optical material due to the intrusion of moisture, with the configuration according to JP-A-2009-163082, JP-A-2010-26307, JP-A-6-123882, and JP-A-2009-80396.